Review: Aloners

Aloners is a free otome game for PC/Mac/Linux by tumblr user sonnet009/ sonnet009games.  Download the game here.

*Rated Mature by creator for explicit language and violence, non-explicit sexual content

Synopsis:  With no memories and no explanation, you wake up to a post-apocalyptic world.  You’re soon confronted by the only other person left alive.  With harsh conditions and limited resources, survival becomes everything.

Characters:  There’s only two main characters, the protagonist (which I’ll discuss in the Gameplay section) and Trash.  Trash is…well he’s a lot of things.  His main goal is survival, and he sticks to that.  He’s a bit rough around the edges, and he doesn’t always know how to be gentle, but he does try.  He has a tendency to be smug and/or sarcastic at times though.  Despite only having the protagonist as a companion, he’s surprisingly closed off at times.

Gameplay:  The protagonist doesn’t really have any set personality.  It’s up to you as the player to shape her, and you can do that through a myriad of choices.  Seriously, there are a lot of choices, and they do affect gameplay.  Subtle changes appear even chapters later based on the choices you made.  You really get the chance to make the character you want.  You want to play a reserved, shy protagonist?  Sure!  You want to be snarky?  Sassy?  Sarcastic?  The options are there for your choosing!  This is the perfect game for those who like to self-insert.

Though Trash does have more of a set personality, his response to your protagonist is also shaped by the choices you make.  He can respond jokingly or kindly or harshly depending on how you choose to play.  And he will remember and mention your choices later too.

There are basically two endings.  One is the bad ending, and the other is the good ending.  However, based on your choices at certain points, the good ending has three variations. Though there are a lot of choices, not all of them necessarily affect what ending you get.  A lot of choices merely shape your journey to the final chapter.

Writing:  Aloners is a perfect mix of a unique story and excellent writing.  It is poignant, tragic, hopeful, and thought provoking.  The plot is more complicated than it appears at first, and the story veers into places and topics that you wouldn’t necessarily expect.

Even though there is only one love interest, Aloners is about getting to know someone under the harshest of conditions.  Do you let them in, or do you keep them at a distance?  And ultimately, can you both survive?

Art:  I love Trash’s design!  The clothes, the hair, the goggles, it all subtly complements his character.  And though there aren’t many CGs, the ones you do get are beautiful. Also, the backgrounds and the GUI add to the dry and distressed feel of the game.

Music:  Both the music and its use in the game are minimal.  The music is minimal in that the textures and sounds are often thin as apposed to full and lush.  Sometimes it even has this primal undercurrent that contributes to the tone of the game.  And the use of music is minimal in that it’s not always present.  When it’s absent, you feel the quietness, the isolation, of their situation.  When it does appear, it’s entrance has impact.  You know something is about to happen.  You know the mood is about to change.

Final Thoughts:  I had played the creator’s previous game Rei, so every since the announcement, I’ve really been looking forward to Aloners.  I’ve seen so many suggestions from people wanting a game where you can really shape the MC and have your choices mean something.  This game does just that. 

I’m biased, but I truly think this game is a bit of a masterpiece.  I know that the creator has put a lot of time and effort and heart into this game, and it resulted in something that is both different and thought provoking.  The array of choices and how they affect gameplay will appeal to a lot of people, and the unique plot and love interest will attract readers interested in a good story. 

In short, play this game!!!